Nigeria Oil price drops to $65 per barrel lowest level since April 2021

For the first time in four years, Brent crude oil prices fell on Friday to $65.58 per barrel. The global oil benchmark, Brent crude, decreased by 7% during trading to $65.58, the lowest level since April 2021. The US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) also dropped by 7.35 percent to 62.03 per barrel.

 The price of crude oil fell, according to Reuters, as China retaliated by increasing tariffs on US goods. This sharply intensified the global trade war, which has investors concerned about a recession. 

Nigeria would be subject to 14 percent of the total tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on all imports into the United States on April 2. The following day, the director-genera I of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, stated that the recent US tariffs will have significant effects on global trade and economic growth prospects. 

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies (OPEC+) also increased their oil production, which contributed to the drop in oil prices. The oil alliance decided on April 4 to increase oil production in May by 411,000 barrels per day (bpd). The decision of eight members to gradually end oil output cuts led to the development. The current price of oil is less than the $75 per barrel budgeted for Nigeria in 2025.